The Blue Demon at the Huntington Theatre now through February
2nd is the world premiere of an extravagantly beautiful 90 minutes of
storytelling written and directed by Resident Director Darko Tresnjak.
Using deceptively simple traditions of stagecraft and storytelling, he and
composer Michael Friedman use live actors, onstage musicians and puppets
to tell a culturally diverse collection of ancient fables that stand the
test of time and offer a little moral for today.

Like Metamorphoses, Mary Zimmerman's Tony Award-winning jolt in
the arm for "story theatre," Tresnjak's production also evolved from his
work with student-actors. While Zimmerman's stories from Ovid had their
genesis in a pool at Northwestern University, Tresnjak's collection of
folktales was brought to life in a field at the Williamstown Theatre
Festival in the summer of 1998.

Photo: T. Charles Erickson

To set the evening of storytelling in motion Tresnjak draws upon "The
Hunchback's Tale," the story of a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim drawn
together by their assumed complicity in the demise of the Sultan's
favorite storyteller. Scheherazade sets the framework for the rest of the
stories by suggesting one of the accused might replace the lost Jester.
Each must now compete to chase away the Sultan's "blue demons" and cure
his insomnia with a story.

Unlike Metamorphoses, which is a collection of stories of varying
lengths, we now know we're in for a series of three roughly equivalent
presentations. In something of a Commedia dell'Arte tradition, rather
than distributing the roles amongst his company of professional and
student actors, Tresnjak assigns equivalent parts to the same ones in each
of the unfolding tales. While diverse enough to make the company seems
three-fold larger, each actor excels only in particular roles.

Brian Sgambati (the juvenile) is an unremarkable husband in "The
Tailor's Tale" and a generic prince in "The Scrivener's Tale," but he pops
to life as The Beggar in "The Jeweler's Tale." Likewise, Anna Belknap
(the ingénue) struggles with the sexuality of The Wife, is enchanting as
The Princess and then unconvincing again as The Last Virgin. Tom Flynn
(the old man) is "two for three" as a delightfully slimy Wizard, a
convincingly morose King, but an undistinguished Old Sultan. Another who
does triple duty is Tom Flynn. We first see him as the victim in "The
Hunchback's Tale." He reappears as The Servant in the first story and,
most endearingly, brings The Peddler to life in the third.

In a program note Artistic Director Nicholas Martin confesses that "as
a rule al fresco theatre with puppets is my idea of hell," but goes on to
say that the original production enchanted him because of Tresnjak's
blending of diverse theatrical elements to weave a story "simply and
engagingly."

By offering the full resources of The Huntington Theatre to mount the
world premiere of The Blue Demon, Martin has perhaps undermined
some of that original spirit. Much credit goes to Scenery Designer David
P. Gordon, Costume Designer Linda Cho, Lighting Designer Rui Rita for
making this an enchanting evening. And mention must also be made of the
work done by props master Kris Holmes to create the puppets Tresnjak
designed.

But stripped of these gorgeous trappings, the script in its present
form wouldn't hold up. The requisite attempt to spice things up with
contemporary references and sensibilities falls flat. Perhaps, given more
time, this company could invest more of themselves into the creation and
find the right balance of anachronisms.

It's also too bad that an unnecessary "adult" spin makes this
production, which would otherwise be a wonderful introduction to the magic
of theatre, unsuitable for younger children. Two of the three main
stories have themes of a sexual nature and, while there's no nudity,
strong language or unnecessary violence, the staging does warrant the
caution.

As usual, The Huntington offers the following ongoing special events to
enrich what already promises to be a cure for those mid-winter "blue
demons."

Humanities Forum
Sunday January 12 following the 2pm matinee
The Huntington production staff will discuss and demonstrate, on stage, a
behind the scenes look at the designs and special effects for The Blue
Demon. (Free and open to the public.)

Club Nights
Thursday, January 9 a 6pm pre-show reception for theatergoers 35 and under
(sponsored by The Boston Phoenix) Wednesday, January 15 a 6pm
pre-show reception for the gay and lesbian community (sponsored by Bay
Windows) Free with purchase of a ticket for the evening performance,
but call for a reservation.

Actors Forum
Thursday, January 16 following the 7:30 performance
Wednesday, January 29 following the 2pm, matinee
Members of the cast from The Blue Demon reappear on stage after the
show for a dialogue with audience members.

And for this production only, two additional special offers:

Family Day matinee
Saturday, January 25 at 2pm
Receive one free child's ticket (up to age 18) for every adult ticket
purchased (subject to availability. Please note: The Blue Demon is
not recommended for children under the age of 8.

The Blue Demon Cocktail
Area restaurants (Ambrosia on Huntington, Aquitaine, Betty's Wok & Noodle
Diner, House of Blues, Jake Ivory's and Spire) have concocted versions of
"The Blue Demon Cocktail." Drink one and receive a $5 off coupon; drink
all six and receive a free ticket with the purchase a full-priced one.

The Blue Demon is at the Huntington Theatre, 264 Huntington
Avenue in Boston now through February 2nd. For additional information and
tickets call the Huntington Box Office at 617 266-0800 or visit
www.huntingtontheatre.org. Tickets also available from Ticketmaster at
617 931-2787.